Plants can play a huge part in making beautiful Christmas displays, both inside and outside the home. So, here are some suggestions on how you can use plants to create wonderful displays and get that feel-good festive spirit.
Hellebores
Look out for Hellebore plants in flower at your local garden centre/plant nursery. They look beautiful placed in a decorative pot on the table, surrounded by berried holly sprigs and candlesticks either side.
Plant them outside afterwards and they should continue flowering for several weeks to come.
Poinsettia
Poinsettias are the ultimate Christmas table centrepiece, with their cheerful bright red ‘leaves’ which are actually bracts, a type of modified leaf. Unlike Hellebores, they won’t survive outside and need very specific conditions to turn red again the following year.
Therefore, many people treat them as annuals, but it is possible, although difficult, to keep them going throughout the year.
Hips and berries
Rose hips can make a lovely addition to the table, placed in a waterless vase, along with other seasonal berries such as Pyracantha ‘Orange Glow’.
Two shrub roses for the garden that produce good, long-lasting hips are ‘Scarlet Fire’ for red and ‘Morning Mist’ for orange hips.
Seedheads
The white, fluffy seed heads of Clematis vitalba ‘Old Man’s Beard’ and strands of ivy can often be gathered whilst out on winter walks. Try wrapping them round a thin branch and suspend them from a ceiling to bring height to your display.
Dried Allium heads such as ‘Purple Sensation’ look wonderful when sprayed gold or silver. The massive sparkler-like heads of ‘Schubertii’ look fantastic when flowering in the garden and also at this time of the year as interior decorations.
In the garden
Conifers add winter interest and colour once deciduous trees and shrubs have lost their leaves. They can also be decorated with frost proof baubles, tinsel and lights to delight you and your visitors both during the day and after dusk.
There are conifers to suit all sizes of garden such as Juniperus communis ‘Compressa’ for small spaces or Thuja orientalis ’Flame’ for the larger garden. ‘Flame’ has the added advantage of turning from golden yellow in the summer to orange tones during the winter months. Pair it with the bright red stems of Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’ and you’ll have an instant festive glow.
To create a winter wonderland look, the slow growing Blue Spruce ‘Edith’, grows in a Christmas tree shape and has icy blue pine needle like leaves.
The underside of the leaves of the Abies koreans (Korean fir) ‘Silberlocke’, are silver, white. This gives it that light dusting of frost look as well as eventually producing pretty purple cones in spring.
To create a winter wonderland look, the slow growing Blue Spruce ‘Edith’, grows in a Christmas tree shape and has icy blue pine needle like leaves.
The underside of the leaves of the Abies koreans (Korean fir) ‘Silberlocke’, are silver, white. This gives it that light dusting of frost look as well as eventually producing pretty purple cones in spring.
You can create a festive display in your home or garden with these plants that will get you in the Christmas spirit. Adorn your front door with plants that will greet guests and welcome you home.
David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
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